Valve-gearing



No. 751,769. PATENTED FEB. 9, 1904.

O. W. YOUNG.

VALVE GEARING. APPLIOATICN FILED AUG. 1, 1901.

.2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

30 MODEL.

[NVEA TQR Alla/nay W1 TNESSES PATENTED FEB. 9, 19-04.

O. W. YOUNG.

VALVE GEARING.

APPLIOATION FILED AUG. 1, 1901.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

NO MODEL.

[NV/51V TOR W1 TNESSESU' YHE NORRI Pam co. PHGFO-LITHQ, wunmc'rom n cPatented February 9, 1904.

UNITED STATES PATENT OEEIcE.

OTIS W. YOUNG, OF ROCKFORD, IOWVA.

VALVE-GEARING.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 751,769, dated February9, 1904.

Original application filed November 8, 1900, Serial No. 35,785. Dividedand this application filed August 1, 1901. Serial No. 70,511. (Nomodel.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, OTIS WV. YOUNG, a citi- Zen of the United States,residing at Rockford, in the county of Floyd and State of Iowa, haveinvented certain new and useful Improvements in Valve-Gearing; and I dohereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact descriptionof the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to whichit appertains to make and use the same.

This invention relates to an improvement in valve-gearing, and it isembodied in the construction, arrangement, and combination of partspresently to be described, and defined in the claims.

It is now a recognized fact that one of the most serious obstaclesencountered in the effort to attain high speed and fuel economy inlocomotives and other engines is in securing proper valve action, and itis also a recognized fact that the present best forms of valvemechanisms, especially such as are adapted for locomotive construction,are inadequate when a speed greater, say, than sixty miles an hour is tobe attained and so largely for the reason that for speeds greater thansiXty miles an hour the fuel consumed is relatively increased at such aratio and to such a proportional extent that for general purposes highspeed is prohibited. Such being the condition as at present existing,the object of my invention is the provision of means and mechanismswhereby the valve-motion may be properly controlled, so that the highestpracticable rate of speed may be attained, a construction which willlessen the strain upon the working parts and avoid in that particularunseeming or dangerous ruptures and which will produce the best resultsfrom the fuel consumed. The objects thus attained result in the securingof more eflicient economy in steam distribution than has heretofore beenfound feasible.

The invention, as stated, relating to valvegearing is designed largelyfor application to the rotary or oscillatory valve and is especiallyapplicable to the construction of valves shown in my application forLetters Patent filed on November 8, 1900, Serial No. 35,785, of whichthe present application is a division.

In the accompanying drawings is shown a practical embodiment of myinvention when used in connection with the Stephenson linkmotion, suchas is in most general use in this country and as applied to alocomotive-engine using the style of valves above referred to; but Iwish it understood that this form is employed for the purpose ofillustration, and the principles of my invention are not limited intheir useful application to the particular construction which is theredelineated, as with slight modifications of form the elements of itscombination can be readily applied to impart motion to other forms ofvalves and other classes of engines.

It is to be understood that the particular construction of valve statedand its associated parts are shown herein largely in diagram, as thesame specifically in this particular application is not herein claimed,but forms the subject-matter of my aforesaid application.

In the drawings, Figure 1 represents a side elevation; Fig. 2, a plan.Figs. 8 and 4 are diagrams illustrating various mechanical effects.Figs. 5 and 6 are enlarged detail views of the cranks and shafts whichconstitute the bearing for the wrist-plate.

Similar letters refer to similar parts throughout the several views. v

Referring to the drawings, A represents the engine-frame, forming thesupport or foundation to which the various parts are secured.

B is the driving-journal, to which are secured the eccentrics O and D.These eccentrics are embraced by the straps E and F, having rods orblades Gr and H, connected at their ends to the link I. Secured to theframe A is a box J, in which is journaled the tumbling-shaft K, to whichis attached the lifting-arm L. The link I is supported by the armL bythe link-hanger H, which connects them. The reverse-rod N is fastened tothe tumbling-shaft K and connects with the reverse-lever (not shown) bythe rod O. This combination is commonly known as the Ste- 7 bolts 8.

In the mechanism above described, which is, as stated, described for thepurposes of illustration, the movement and general adjustments are wellunderstood; but to effect proper adjustments of the valves and thedirect action of the ports thereof I have employed the followingmechanism: A rocker-arm Pis journaled in a box Q, mounted on the frameA, and receives its motion from the link I, the link being attached tothe lowcr end of the rocker-arm in any convenient manner. The upper endof the rocker-arm is pivotally connected with the reach-rod R, which inturn is connected to a wrist-plate S. The wristplate is conveniently inthe form of a triangle, and is mounted centrally upon a transverse shaftT, located between the castings of the steam-chest and thesteam-passages. The shaft T constitutes arigid connection between theouter ends of two crank-arms W, which in turn are carried by stub-shaftsX X, mounted in suitable bearings Y and Z on the fixed part of thestructure. The wrist-plate is provided with a suitable collar 8, whichextends .on opposite sides thereof, as shown in Fig. 2,

which embraces the shaft Tand is held in position by the crank-arms W,the collar being sp it and held in position by suitable nuts and Theupper arm of the wrist-plate is pivotally connected to the reach-rod R,while the opposite arms have pivotally connected thereto thevalve-actuating rods U, which in turn are connected to the cranks V,rigid on the stem V of the valves V "This connection between thewrist-plate and the valves is such'that the motion of the wrist-platecauses one valve to move with a gradually-increasing speed, while theother valve moves at a decreasing speed, thus securing a rapid openingand closing of the admission part and adwellbefore closing the exhaustpart, there- .by utilizing to the utmost the advantages that have beenproven to be valuable in the well-known Corliss movement.

represented at T, IV, X, X, and a are preferablyandconveniently made inone piece or rigid'one with the other, and it will be evident that inthe absence of other supports the shafts would turn in their boxes.Secured to the lower crank and the pin 5 is one end of the adjustablerod 0, its other end being, at-

. tached to the strap (Z, embracing the eccentric'e, which is keyed tothe shaft K. The rod 0 in this manner prevents the crank-shaftsfrom'turn1ng 1n thelr bearing.

The rods R and c are shown to be fashioned at their opposite ends withright and left hand threads, so

' that by turning in one direction will lengthen and in the other willshorten the distance be- The con-.

tween the points they connect, and the nuts f lock them in the desiredposition. It will be perceived that the eccentric e is secured to theshaftK in such a position that by moving the reverse-lever so as tobring the rod N in a vertical position, consequently turning the shaftK, raising the arm L, and the link I, so that the center of the link isopposite the pin 9 in the lower end of the rocker-arm, a straight linethrough the centers of the pin 6 and shaft K, Fig. 1, would intersectthe circumference of the eccentric e at its greatest distance from theshaft K, thus pulling the rod 0, and consequently lowering the shaft T,upon which the wrist-plate is mounted, and a continued turning of theeccentric e and raising of the link I until it is an equal distanceabove its central position to that previously occupied in its lowerposition would restore the wristplate bearing to its former position,and the link would then be in position for the back up motion of anengine. While I prefer to use an eccentric for this purpose, the sameresult could be attained by securing an arm to the tumbling-shaft orforming the shaft in the shape of a crank. This automatic lowering ofthe wrist-plate as the link approaches a central position is for apurpose which will hereinafter be fully explained.

By the foregoing description it is evident that a rotary motion of thedriving-journal B will, through the agency of the eccentric C, strap E,rod G, and link-I, impart a rocking or oscillating motion to the arm P,and this motion being transmitted, by means of the rod R, to thewrist-plate S will cause a similar motion by. the connection U to thecranks V, which operate the valve V By means of a mechanism such asabove described I attain the following important advantages:

First. A better distribution of steam through a more perfectvalve-motion than any of which I am aware, as reference to Fig. 4, inwhich the position ofthe valves is indicated by solid lines when inposition for the left-hand valve to commence uncovering the inlet-portand by dotted lines when it has moved to its limit of overtravel afteruncovering the port, shows that during the entire movement between thesepositions the valve then governing the exhaust-port remains practicallystationary, the mechanism serving to cause a dwell in the movement ofone of the valves, affording an uninterrupted flow of exhaust-steam. Theexhaust-port being entirely uncovered before the admission-portcommences to uncover and remaining uncovered until the admission-port isclosed and the steam-supply into the cylinder cut off results in anearly prerelease and late compression, thus reducing the back pressureuponthe piston to a minimum. The leverage being such slight movement ofthe top of thewrist-plate produces a greater movement oftheadmission-valve upon its seat, a rapid opening and closing of theinlet-port is thereby obtained, which results in high initial pressureagainst the piston at the beginning of its stroke, and this pressure ismaintained during almost the entire period of admission.

Second. It is a well-known fact that in locomotives running at a highrate of speed it is more difficult to exhaust steam from the cylindersthan it is to admit it. This is principally due to the fact that withthe link-motion and slide-valves generally in use it is desirable toraise the link toward a central position as the speed increases, thusshortening the travel of the valve and cutting olf the period ofadmission shorter and not only economizing in the use of steam, butreducing the amount to be exhausted. One of the defects, however, ofthis method is that shortening the period of admission also contractsthe opening for exhaust and chokes the free exhaust just at the timewhen it is most needed. Another defect is that as the cut-off isshortened the lead of the valve is correspondingly increased, these twofacts resulting in more compression and preadmission than are nec:essary to cushion the piston, and a very decided back pressure isthereby created, which causes a serious loss of power and makes itdiflicult and expensive to attain as high a rate of speed as isfrequently desired. These defects are fully overcome by the mechanismherewith described for lowering and raising the bearing upon which thewrist-plate is mounted, for it is apparent that as the link approaches acentral position, thus lowering the wrist-plate bearing, reference toFig. 8, (in which the dotted lines show that lowering the wrist-platechanges the relative position of the valves towardeach other and intheir relation to the cylinder-ports,) demonstrates that the increasedlead is counteracted, and as the throw of the eccentric 6, Fig. 1,governs the movement of the wrist-plate bearing the designer of anengine has only to determine what portion of the variation he wishes tonullify, as either a uniform or constant lead or any desirable variationare practicable in this form of construction.

In addition to regulating the lead of the valves the adjustablewrist-plate bearing possesses the important advantage also of regulatingthe valve governing the exhaust, for, referring again to Fig. 3, it willbe perceived that while the solid lines show both valves in theircentral position covering the two steamports, so that they lap over theinside edge of the ports, the dotted lines caused by lowering thewrist-plate exhibit the valve covering only a portion of the ports andproducing an inside clearance instead of an inside lap. The beneficialresults of automatically changing the adjustment of the valves for thelower points of cut-off, and consequently reducing the amount ofpreadmission and compression, and thus the excessive back pressure uponthe piston, are that practically all the steam admitted into thecylinder is effective to its greatest force for useful work and havingless back pressure to overcome may be cut off earlier in the stroke andthe piston brought to a state of rest at the end of the cylinder bydecreasing the force of the power propelling it, instead ofcounteracting it by an opposing power, and the further advantageresulting from diminishing these opposing forces are conducive to lessstrain upon the cylinderheads and wearing parts.

The particular construction embodying the wrist-plate and its especialactuating mechanism has been found to be eminently satisfactory, but theprinciple of the invention there disclosed may be employed with otherforms of construction and with entirely-different types of mechanism,which will result in securing either automatically or otherwise thedwell and a uniform lead of the valve move' ment. It will therefore beapparent that the invention is wider and broader in the generalprinciple and scope than the details of construction shown and describedherein.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed as new, and desiredto be secured by Letters Patent, is

1. The combination with valves which control the inlet and exhaust, ofan operating wrist-plate therefor; a movable bearing for the wrist-platepositioned and arranged relatively to the valves to increase theexhaust-lead by its adjustment in one direction, and means for 'soadjusting said bearing.

2. The combination with valves which control the inlet and exhaust, ofan operating wrist-plate connected thereto a movable bearing for thewrist-plate positioned and arranged to increase the lead by itsadjustment in one direction, and means acting for so adjusting saidwrist-plate bearing when the cut-off is shortened. r

3. The combination with valves which control the inlet and exhaust, ofan operating wrist-plate therefor; a crank-shaft on which saidwrist-plate is mounted, positioned and arranged relatively to the valvesto increase the exhaust-lead when the crank-shaft is rocked in onedirection, and means operating said crank-shaft to so rock it,comprising an eccentric and a rod operated by the eccentricconnected tothe crank-shaft. I

4:. The combination with valves which control the inlet and exhaust, ofan operating wrist-plate therefor, a movable bearing for saidwrist-plate positioned and arranged relatively to the valves to increasethe exhaustlead by movement in one direction, operating means for somoving the wrist'plate bearing, a shifting link, means for shifting saidlink,

. for the wrist-plate bearing, substantially as described.

5. The combination with valves, of an op- .erating wrist-plate therefor,a crank-shaft upon which said Wrist-plate is mounted to rock, means foroperating said wrist-plate, an eccentric, a rod operated by theeccentric and connected to said crank-shaft, and means for moving theeccentric, substantially as described.

6. The combination with valves, of an operating wrist-plate therefor,means for operating said wrist-plate, a crank upon which saidwrist-plate is mounted to rock, and means for shifting the crank tochange the position of the wrist-plate bearing, including an eccentric,a rod operated by the eccentric and connected to the crank-shaft andmeans for moving the eccentric, substantially as described.

7. The combination with valves, of an operating wrist-plate therefor, amovable bearing for said wrist-plate, means for operating saidwrist-plate including a shifting link, an eccentric shifting with saidshifting link, a rod operated by said eccentric and connected to thewrist-plate bearing and means for opcrating said eccentric,substantially as described.

8. The combination with valves, of an operating wrist-plate therefor,means for operating the wrist-plate, a movable bearing for thewrist-plate, an eccentric, a rod connecting the eccentric andwrist-plate bearing and means for adjusting said rod, substantially asdescribed.

9. The combination with valves which control the inlet and'eXhaust, of awrist-plate for operating the same, a movable bearing for thewrist-plate positioned and arranged relatively to the valves to increasethe exhaustlead by movement in one direction, means for so moving thebearing, and adjusting means to determine the amount of movement of thebearing, substantially as described.

10. In valve mechanism for steam-engines the combination with valves, ofmechanism for causing the valves to travel with a uniform or constantsteam-lead for all points of cut-off, and an increased exhaust-lead forthe shorter points of cut-off, and means for actuating said mechanism.

11. In valve mechanism for steam-engines, the combination with valves,ofa link mechanism and mechanism for relatively adjusting the valves toincrease the exhaust-lead and reduce the steam-lead.

12. Inavalve-gearing the combination with valves each of which operatesalternately for inlet and exhaust, a link mechanism, and means forshifting the link, of a valve-actuating mechanism, a connection betweenthe link mechanism and the valve-actuating mechanism, and means actuatedby the link-actuated mechanism for shifting the valve-actuatingmechanism for the purposes described.

13. In a valve-gearing the combination with valves each of whichoperates alternately for inlet and exhaust, of a link mechanism, meansfor shifting the link, a valve-actuating mechanism, a connection betweenthe link mechanism and the valve actuating mechanism, means for changingthe active position of the valve-actuating mechanism and a connectionbetween such changing means and the linkshifting means, substantially asdescribed.

14. The combination with a link mechanism of a rocker-arm P, awrist-plate, valves connected with the wrist-plate, an adjustabledevice, a pivotal connection between the adjustable device and thewrist-plate, link-shifting mechanism and a connection between thelinkshifting mechanism and the adjustable device, substantially asdescribed.

15. The combination with link mechanism and means for shifting the link,of oscillating valves each of which operates alternately for inlet andexhaust, a Wrist-plate, a pivotal connection between the wrist plate andthe valves, an adjustable support for the wristplate, means connectingthe said support with the link-shifting mechanism and a connectionbetween the link mechanism and the wrist-' plate, substantially asdescribed.

16. In combination valve-seats,valves thereon each of which operatesalternately for inlet and exhaust, and requiring to be moved in oppositedirections to cover the corresponding ports of their respective seats; amember for operating the valves, and means for varying the spread ordistance between their paths of travel on their respective seats.

17. In combination with the valves each of which operates alternatelyfor inlet and exhaust; a member for operating them; a movable supportfor the operating member; and means for moving the support to vary thespread, or distance between the paths of travel, of the valves.

18. In combination with the valves each of which operates alternatelyfor inlet and exhaust; a pivoted member for operating them; links fromsuch pivoted member to the valves respectively; a movable support forsaid operating member; and means for adjusting the support to vary thespread of the valves.

19. In combination with the valves each of which operates alternatelyfor inlet and exhaust; a member for operating them; means for varyingthe spread of the valves; means for regulating the cut-off; andconnections from the cut-oif-regulating means to the spreadvarying meansfor adjusting the latter automatically with the cut-off.

20. In combination with the valves a member for operating them; meansfor varying the spread of the valves; a rocking shaft for adjusting thecut-off; an eccentric on such rocking shaft; and connections from suchec- IIO centric to the means for varying the spread of the valves;whereby said spread-varying means is operated with the adjustment of thecut-off.

21. In combination with two valves which operate alternately as inletand exhaust valves; means for operating such valves; and means forchanging their relative positions to cause the lead of the valveoperating as an inlet to be reduced at the same time that the valveoperating as an exhaust-valve is caused to open earlier and close later.

22. In combination with two valves which operate alternately as inletand exhaust valves; a member by which they are operated; a movablesupport for the operating member positioned and arranged relative to thevalves so that by its adjustment the exhaust-lead can be increased andthe steam-lead reduced; and means for moving the support.

23. .In combination with two valves which act alternately as inlet andexhaust valves; a member by which they are operated; links connectingsaid operating member with the valves respectively; a movable supportfor said member; and means for adjusting such support to vary the spreador distance between the paths of travel of the valves.

24. In combination with two valves which act alternately as inlet andexhaust valves; a member for operating said valves; links from theoperating member to the valves respectively trending in oppositedirections; a movable support for said operating member; and means foradjusting it to vary the trend of the links.

25. In combination with two valves which act alternately as inlet andexhaust valves; a pivoted member by which they are both operated; linkstrending in opposite directions from said pivoted member connecting itto the valves respectively; a movable support for said pivoted member;and means for adjusting it to modify the trend of the links.

26. In combination with two valves which operate alternately as inletand exhaust valves; means for adjusting their relative positions; meansfor adjusting the cut-off; and connections from the cut-off-adjustingmeans to the means for adjusting the relative position of the valves,arranged to retard the valve operating as an inlet when the cut-off isshortened, and advance the valve operating for exhaust.

27. In combination with two valves which act alternately as inlet andexhaust valves; a pivoted member by which they are both operated; andoppositely-inclined links connecting said pivoted member to the valvesrespectively.

28. In combination with two valves which act alternately as inlet andexhaust valves; a

pivoted member by which they are both operated; and links trending inopposite directions from said pivoted member connecting said valvesrespectively, to operate them.

29. The combination with valves which operate for exhaust, of anoperating wrist-plate therefor, a movable bearing for the wristplate,and exhaust-lead-regulating means for shifting the said bearing,substantially as described.

30. The combination with Valves which operate for exhaust, of anoperating wrist-plate connected thereto, a movable bearing for the wristplate, and exhaust lead regulating means acting for adjusting saidwrist-plate bearing to different points of cut-off, substantially asdescribed.

31. The combination with valves, of an operating wrist-plate therefor, acrank-shaft upon which said wrist-plate is mounted, and lead regulatingmeans for operating said crank-shaft to change the position of thebearing for thewrist-plate, comprising an eccentric, or crank, and a rodoperated by the eccentric and connected to said crankshaft,substantially as described.

32. The combination with valves, of an operating wrist-plate therefor,means for operating said wrist-plate, a crank-shaft upon which saidwrist-plate is mounted to rock, and lead-regulating means forautomatically shifting the crank-shaft to change the position of thewrist-plate bearing, including an eccentric, a rod operated bytheeccentric and connected to the crank-shaft, and means for moving theeccentric, substantially as described.

33. The combination with valves which operate for exhaust, of awrist-plate for operating the same, a movable bearing for thewrist-plate, lead-regulating means for moving the bearing and adjustingmeans to determine the amount of movement of the bearing, substantiallyas described.

34:. In a valve mechanism for steam-engines, the combination withvalves, of mechanism for causing the valves to travel with a uniform orconstant steam-lead, combined with an increased exhaust-lead for theshorter points of cut-ofi; substantially as described.

35. In combination with two valves which operate alternately as inletand outlet valves, a member by which they are operated, a movablesupport for the operating member, and lead-regulating means for movingthe support In testimony whereof I affix my signaturein presence of twowitnesses.

OTIS W. YOUNG.

Witnesses:

L. A. SANFORD, B. R. MOORE.

